Thursday, March 31, 2016

Canada's Prince Edward Island ends abortion ban in province

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/mar/31/canada-prince-edward-island-ends-abortion-ban

After a decades-long battle by pro-choice groups, Canada’s Prince Edward Island will abandon a policy that saw the province become the only one in the country where women cannot access an abortion.

Wade MacLauchlan, the Liberal premier of PEI, announced plans on Thursday to build a reproductive health centre on the island that will offer medical and surgical abortions, among other services. The aim is to begin providing abortions by the end of the year.

The issue has been a flashpoint for decades in the province, where advocates say the last abortion was carried out in the early 1980s. In 1988, after Canada’s supreme court struck down the federal criminal law on abortion, PEI passed a resolution opposing abortions in the province.

In January, a pro-choice group took the government to court, arguing that the province has an obligation to provide unrestricted, publicly funded abortions. On Thursday, MacLauchlan said that while many in his cabinet and caucus have differing opinions on abortion, the government realised it likely would not be able to defend itself against the legal challenge and had been forced to change course.

The news was celebrated by pro-choice advocates on the island. “I’m just elated,” said Ann Wheatley. “It’s been a really long, hard struggle and this is a very satisfying day.”

For decades women in PEI would have to get a referral from a doctor in PEI to travel to the neighbouring province of Nova Scotia for the procedure or foot the cost of having an abortion at a private clinic off the island.

Those who couldn’t make the journey at times made desperate decisions, said Wheatley, with some trying to induce abortions by ingesting chemicals or being punched in the stomach. “There have been stories of women who have gone through extreme hardship to get an abortion.”

In June, the provincial government said it would pay for abortions carried out in the neighbouring province of New Brunswick. But it remained obstinate about providing access to abortions on the island. “It really sent the message that there was something wrong with abortion and gave it an aura of shame and stigma that really affected women and affected access to abortion,” said Wheatley.

Thursday’s announcement was welcomed by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. “A woman’s right to choose is a fundamental right in our country,” he said in a statement. “The Government of Canada reaffirms its belief that a woman should have access to reproductive health services, no matter where they live in our country.”

The prime minister’s support for abortions came as the issue dominated the daily coverage of the US presidential election, after Republican frontrunner Donald Trump said in a TV interview on Wednesday that abortion should be illegal and the women who undergo the procedure should face punishment. He later attempted to recant, saying that only those who perform abortions should be held legally responsible.

Alaska’s Volcano Cools Down, While a Chilean One Heats Up

http://www.wired.com/2016/03/alaskas-volcano-cools-chilean-one-heats/

The Pavlof Volcano spews ash in the Aleutian Islands of Alaska on March 28, 2016. US COAST GUARD/REUTERS

The ERUPTION THAT STARTED Sunday at Alaska’s Pavlof has abated after over 24 hours of intense activity. The Alaska Volcano Observatory lowered the area’s alert status to orange after a drop in seismicity (meaning less magma is likely rising up into the volcano or the rate of eruption has dropped).

But the ash cloud that topped out at ~11 kilometers (37,000 feet) high is still lingering over the Bering Sea and interior Alaska. Yesterday, the ash was significant enough to prompt Alaska Airlines to cancel 20 flights while PenAir ended up canceling most of their flights. Even with those cancellations, a passenger on an Alaska Airlines flight captured a great video of the erupting Pavlof.

VIDEO!
Erupción del volcán #Pavlof en vuelo de Airlines 164 sobre Adak #Alaska
Créditos: kyle Hopkins
Vía Jim Lewis pic.twitter.com/U0Hu1vYJed

— Geól. Sergio Almazán (@chematierra) March 29, 2016

Although current jet stream conditions could eventually bring dilute ash to the lower 48 states, it is unlikely that this brief eruption at Pavlof will cause much “travel chaos.” Meanwhile, ash was also falling on towns like Nelson Lagoon, located over 120 kilometers (80 miles) northeast of Pavlof.

Dave Schneider from AVO said this eruption was more energetic than any eruption at Pavlof since at least 1996. The Himawari-8 weather satellite captured a great series of shots of the plume rising up over the cloud deck, sending a trail of ash to the northeast (see below). That plume was also captured in color by Terra’s MODIS imager, showing how much the volcanic ash stands out against the cloud cover. There was also a clearly visible sulfur dioxide plumefrom the eruption in the recent OMPS pass.

Himawari-8 loop from March 28, 2016 showing the plume from Alaska's Pavlof. Click on the image to see the loop.Dan Lindsey / NOAA — Himawari-8 loop from March 28, 2016 showing the plume from Alaska’s Pavlof. Click on the image to see the loop.Dan Lindsey / NOAA

Some new images of Pavlof taken by the US Coast Guard since the eruption began to clearly show volcanic mudflows and possibly lava flows on the flanks of the volcano (see below). From the looks of the images, the eruption came from a vent just below the summit of the volcano.

Pavlof in Alaska, seen on March 28, 2016, with a strong ash plume and possible mudflows (lahars) on the slopes.AUSTIN TORRES / AVO – US COAST GUARD

Some other volcano updates:

Chile
Copahue has been more restless over the past week and the current eruption was captured by Jeff Williams, one of the astronauts on the International Space Station (see below). The SERNAGEOMIN currently has Copahue at yellow alert status as elevated seismicity and sulfur dioxide emissions (sometimes over 2000 tonnes/day) continue. The volcano has also been producing a nearly constant plume with incandescence noticed at night on the SERNAGEOMIN webcam.

Copahue volcano erupting in Chile, South America. pic.twitter.com/CNNWPrCPPk

— Jeff Williams (@Astro_Jeff) March 28, 2016

Philippines
PHILVOLCS raised the alert status to level 1 after the volcano produced another small explosive eruption. Alert status raised after another phreatic (steam-driven) explosion (see below). There is currently a 4-kilometer exclusion zonearound the volcano along with a no-fly order over the volcano. Kanlaon produced a few small explosions last November and December but hasn’t had a major eruptive period since 2006.

Why Brazil's leader is inching toward impeachment

Why Brazil’s leader is inching toward impeachment

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2016/03/31/why-brazils-leader-inching-toward-impeachment/82461022/

A few weeks ago, Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff was largely expected to survive an impeachment effort against her.

That all changed Tuesday, when the nation’s biggest political party, the Brazilian Democratic Movement Party, split from the governing coalition that has so far kept Rousseff afloat.

Without its support, Rousseff looks increasingly unlikely to stave off the two-thirds vote of both houses of congress needed to impeach her.

So, how did this turnaround happen?

Well, for starters, Rousseff has been terribly unpopular for at least a year. Opinion polls show her public approval hovering around 10%. And the last 12 months have been spectacularly brutal for her: The economy is imploding; multiple corruption investigations are ensnaring — and jailing — rich and powerful politicians and business execs; and the Zika crisis is exposing drastic problems with health care.

The president faces numerous impeachment efforts, including for allegedly manipulating the budget to boost public spending in order to look good for the 2014 elections, which she denies. But that’s not all.

USA TODAY

DailyChatter: For Brazil's president, it's Lula or bust

What analysts say really tipped the balance was Rousseff’s attempt in mid-March to appoint her predecessor, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, to cabinet chief of staff. The former president, popularly known as Lula, is being investigated for suspected links to the huge corruption scandal surrounding the state oil company Petrobras. So, many Brazilians got angry about the possibility that he was merely trying to dodge prosecution with the special privileges enjoyed by government ministers. (Rousseff and Lula deny this.)

It set off massive protests, and even prompted the Brazilian Bar Association to file yet another impeachment request. It also apparently angered Rousselff's big governing party partner. And so it split.

Rousseff's own vice president, Michel Temer, belongs to the party that just dumped her. If Rousseff is impeached, Temer will be her successor.

The fear among government supporters and, more broadly, Brazil’s left wing, is that her impeachment could therefore usher in more fiscally conservative leaders, of whom Temer would be the first. According to recent media reports, Temer’s party is already planning drastic reforms, including cutbacks to the hefty social spending and benefits of Lula and Rousseff.

USA TODAY

Lucky Lula! Cabinet job buys Brazil’s ex-president some time

But guess what: the veep himself is being investigated for alleged corruption, too.

Let it be noted, although Rousseff is accused of fiscal impropriety, it’s not for padding out her personal finances from corruption. The accusations against Rousseff make her appear pretty clean in comparison with some of the people calling for her ouster, as the L.A. Times reports.

That’s led commentators including Rio-based journalist Glenn Greenwald to liken her impeachment to a de-facto coup by Brazil’s right-wing power-brokers.

Perhaps fueling that theory, the country’s main stock and currency exchanges have rejoiced with each development seeming to inch Rousseff closer to her downfall.

Heloisa Galvão, a Brazilian resident in Boston, is afraid of what she’s seeing in her home country, whose democracy is little more than 30 years old.

“I hear from a lot of people who are advocating for impeachment that they miss the dictatorship. I don’t understand that,” Galvão told PRI's The World on Wednesday.

Mexico turning child migrants back to face violence in Central America

Vulnerable children fleeing gang-fuelled violence in Central America are routinely deported by Mexican immigration officials regardless of the dangers they may face on their return home, according to a new Human Rights Watch (HRW) report.

Less than 1% of children detained in Mexico are accepted as refugees, even though about half are running away from criminal gangs in Central America’s violent northern triangle.

Richmond shooting: Trooper and suspect dead, 2 injured

A man pulled a gun and shot a Virginia State Police trooper at a Greyhound bus station in Richmond, Virginia, on Thursday.

Both the trooper and the suspect are dead, according to Virginia State Police.

"We're not going to get into any details at this point. As you can imagine, this still is in the early stages of the investigation," said police spokeswoman Corinne Geller.

Here's a look at what we know about the incident so far:

California has become the first state in the nation to approve a statewide $15 minimum wage.

Both the State Assembly and State Senate passed the measure on Thursday afternoon. Governor Jerry Brown said he would sign it on Monday.

"No one who is working full time in California should live in poverty due to a low wage," said Democratic State Senator Mark Leno, who cosponsored the bill.

The measure will raise the state's minimum wage to $10.50 in January and to $11 in January 2018. It will then increase by an additional $1 per hour every year until it reaches $15 in 2022. If, however, the state goes through an economic downturn or budget crisis, the governor may choose to slow the implementation.

Venezuela's National Assembly passes amnesty bill

The Venezuelan National Assembly has passed an amnesty bill which could free dozens of jailed opposition leaders.

The opposition-controlled assembly passed the bill after a heated discussion late on Tuesday.

President Nicolas Maduro said he would block the bill, which he argued would benefit "criminals and terrorists".

The opposition won the parliamentary elections in December on a promise to work towards the release of dozens of what it considers political prisoners.

Among the more than 70 detainees who could be freed if the bill becomes law is Leopoldo Lopez, a prominent opposition leader who was sentenced to 13 years and nine months in prison last year for inciting violence during mass protests.

Leopoldo Lopez: Venezuela's maverick opposition leader

Venezuela opposition pushed for Maduro's exit

What changes will the new Congress bring?

The prosecutor in the case later fled Venezuela and told media abroad that Mr Lopez's conviction had been a political show trial.

But government officials maintain Mr Lopez is responsible for the violence which erupted during the 2014 protests in which 43 people on both sides of the political divide were killed.

'Free Venezuela'

Mr Lopez's wife, Lilian Tintori, welcomed the passing of the bill, saying it was "felt in all of Venezuela, like a fireworks rocket going off in Caracas, full of emotion, freedom and strength".

Argentina lawmakers win approval for debt deal

Argentina's President Mauricio Macri has won approval for a repayment deal which should put an end to the country's 15-year battle with holdout creditors.

The years-long debt crisis has restricted Argentina's access to international credit markets and made doing business in the country difficult.

Argentina defaulted on a $100bn (£71bn) loan in 2001.

The deal is with creditors in New York.

The repayment package was finally approved by the Senate after a 12-hour debate on Wednesday.

President Macri had warned lawmakers that a "no" vote would condemn Argentina to remain a "financial pariah" shunned by global credit markets. Argentina now only has until 14 April to pay the holdouts.

Debt crisis

Image captionDemonstrators hold signs reading "Down with the Vulture's Deal" outside the National Congress in Buenos Aires earlier this month

Argentina's neighbours are able to borrow with interest rates of about 5%. However, Argentina has been forced to pay at least double, leaving it short of much-needed financial help.

Wednesday's "yes" vote is a victory for President Macri, who struck the debt deal after his election win in November. The debt crisis was a central part of his presidential campaign.

Analysis; Daniel Gallas, South America business correspondent

Mauricio Macri did his "homework" as promised and got Congress to meet one of the conditions for Argentina to clear its name internationally and get back to issuing bond.

Now comes the expensive part: paying out its debt.

Macri has promised the country will start paying it on 14 April, despite some reports that Argentina might want to delay the beginning of payment.

The country is not issuing bonds yet, so it is in a weak financial position.

The government is in a hurry to raise $12bn, so it can stop printing money to pay off its internal debts and stop inflation from inflicting even more pain on the economy.

Trump says punish women for illegal abortions, then back-tracks

Presidential candidate Donald Trump briefly called for "some form of punishment" for women who have abortions, if it became illegal.

His initial comments made during a town hall event with cable network MSNBC sparked a wave of criticism.

However, Mr Trump quickly reversed his position, saying only the person who performed the abortion should be punished.

But he maintained: "My position has not changed."

The front-runner supports a ban on abortions, with certain exceptions.

Abortion has been legal in the United States since 1973 after a landmark Supreme Court ruling.

Only the high court or a constitutional amendment has the power to overturn Roe v Wade and make abortion illegal.

Once a Democrat, Mr Trump has been criticised for supporting abortion rights in the past.

Analysis: Anthony Zurcher, BBC News North America reporter

Image captionAbortion is still a divisive issue in the US

The Republican Party's official position is that abortion should be illegal. Conservative politicians and anti-abortion activists who view abortion as akin to murder, however, tend to avoid outlining any criminal punishment for women who undergo the procedure, instead targeting the doctors responsible.

The reason for this is simple - to make abortion bans more acceptable to a general public that does not want to see possibly distraught women grappling with unwanted pregnancies sent to prison.

Donald Trump, as he is wont to do, just trampled through this carefully constructed conservative political dance with all the grace of a rhinoceros at a tea party. Thanks to his assertion, after prodding, that women should face "some form of punishment" for having an illegal abortion, the conservative pro-life movement is going to be forced to defend their beliefs on uncomfortable ground. Republican candidates will be asked, again and again, to defend or denounce Mr Trump's comments.

This is exactly the kind of scenario that terrifies Republican politicians about Mr Trump as their party's nominee. His ill-considered remarks and shoot-from-the-hip approach to media interviews could be a political minefield for their candidates in the autumn.

In all likelihood it's just a taste of things to come.

However, some anti-abortion groups criticised Mr Trump's initial comments as extreme.

"Mr Trump's comment today is completely out of touch with the pro-life movement and even more with women who have chosen such a sad thing as abortion," said Jeanne Mancini, President of the March for Life Education and Defense Fund.

"No pro-lifer would ever want to punish a woman who has chosen abortion."

Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton has been an outspoken critic of Mr Trump's stance on women's issues.

"Just when you thought it couldn't get worse. Horrific and telling," said Mrs Clinton after his latest comments.

Text by FRANCE 24

Latest update : 2016-03-30

Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump's campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, was charged Tuesday with simple battery in connection with an incident earlier this month involving a reporter, according to Florida police.

Brazil's largest party announced on Tuesday it is leaving President Dilma Rousseff's governing coalition in a move that cripples her fight against impeachment proceedings in Congress.

Americas

‘More than 230,000’ Columbian children uprooted by war

Text by NEWS WIRES

Latest update : 2016-03-21

LVHS IR/GSI Blog: The Americas (1st)